


I’d heard of you before we met.

by BarPurple



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: First Meetings, Molly Apreciation Week 2017, Pre-Season/Series 01
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-12
Updated: 2017-02-12
Packaged: 2018-09-23 18:43:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9671282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BarPurple/pseuds/BarPurple
Summary: Of course she'd heard about him, but she was surprised to find out he'd heard of her too.





	

“Fusarium roseum ‘Accumunatum’ and Verticillium dahliae someone’s been using horseradish with black rot.”

Sherlock blinked twice at the interruption from the, was she a new intern? Probably, young enough to be, lack of dress sense suggested student, who looking at the microscope screen.

“What are you babbling about?”

“The slide you’re looking at. There common parasites in horseradish. Has someone tried to confuse the Luminol test,” she gave a little nervous snort, “Death at the deli counter?”

Sherlock’s hands twitched in front of his face as he popped into his mind palace. He didn’t observe the woman lean forward curiously to peer at him. He snapped back and she jumped slightly.

“I’ve read a paper on this by Doctor Margaret Hooper.”

“Oh you’ve read it?”

The note of surprise in her voice confused him for a moment; personal involvement? Or just impressed by a common link with him? Unimportant.

“You’re familiar with it?”

She frowned at him; “Yes, but I wrote it, so it would have be rather strange if I wasn’t.”

“You’re Margaret Hooper?”

Her frown deepened a little more. Her nose scrunched when she was this perplexed, why had he noticed that?

“Mike Stamford introduced us an hour ago. Well, he called me Molly Hooper, because that’s what I prefer to be called.”

Sherlock had been focused on the investigation so hadn’t really been listening to Mike; he tended not to unless he caught important phrases like ‘lab equipment’ or ‘body parts’. Now she’d said something interesting he was paying attention, so much that she began fidgeting with the hem of her gaudy jumper.

“What does the sample tell you then?”

She was cautious, probably already heard the tales of him asking for an opinion so he could tear the person to shreds. After an instant of dithering she rose to his challenge and peered into the microscope.

“You wouldn’t see this level of black rot in a commercial product, this is more likely to be home grown, a beginner gardener perhaps who didn’t know how to protect against it, or an allotment that’s had a bad season maybe.”

Sherlock gasped in a sharp breath as the pieces fell into place.

“He wasn’t killed in the house. This isn’t a cover-up, well it is just not in the way we thought it was.”

As he spoke he’d bounced from his stool and rushed out of the door. Molly frowned at the mess he’d left on the bench.

“Okay, then. I guess I’ll be tidying this up.”

The door to the lab flew open again and the lanky detective popped his head around and pointed at her.

“Molly Hooper?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you Molly Hooper.”

With that he was gone again. Molly smiled to herself, considering the stories she’d heard about Sherlock Holmes, (which either referred to him as consulting detective, or insulting dickhead depending who you asked), her first interaction with him had gone better than expected.


End file.
